Efficiently moving data between data processing boards in a multi-board processing environment represents a challenging task. The development such an efficient communication utility for these data transfers becomes a particularly daunting task when a project that needs such data transfers is a continuously evolving project.
For example, at some point after a multi-board data processing system has been designed, or at least preliminarily designed, better hardware may be developed such that what was once a three board processing system may be reduced to a two board processing system. With the steady improvements being made in processing power from one year to the next, such evolutionary possibilities cannot be ignored.
Also, it may be the case that additional functionalities are added to the multi-board processing system that necessitate the addition of another data processing board. Further, it may be the case that testing of a multi-board data processing system reveals various shortcomings in how data is transferred. This consideration is particularly acute in systems wherein high speed processing of large volumes of data is necessary.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a communication utility that moves data between data processing boards over a data bus, wherein the communication utility is both high speed and easily configurable to accommodate changes in processing needs or the processing environment.
Furthermore, many multi-board processing systems are implemented in a manner that makes space a premium commodity. In one application of the present disclosure, a strike helmet for pilots such as the Strike Helmet 21 project by the assignee of the present disclosure, the data processing boards are seated in a Versa Module Europa (VME) chassis such that an insufficient number of hardware slots are available for a variety of communication methods (such as Fibre Channel). In cases such as this, in addition to providing flexibility for evolving communication frameworks, the implementation of a multi-board communication utility should also provide space efficiency to satisfy narrow size constraints.